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MrSeb writes "Electric cars and plug-in hybrids took a beating on reliability, testing, and sales over the winter: $40,000 Tesla batteries bricking, a Fisker dying at the hands of Consumer Reports testers, a bit player going under, production suspended for five weeks on the Chevrolet Volt. Taken together, critics say, it proves electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) have finally been exposed as overpriced frauds. In reality, though, it's more likely that these events are just randomness, and bugs caused by new, relatively untested tech. The Chevrolet Volt, for example, has probably just run out of early adopters (it's too expensive for mass market) — and the Fisker Karma, which famously had a full system failure the first time Consumer Reports reached 65 mph, is a classic case of immature tech (and an immature startup) that hasn't been fully tested. The fact is, electric cars aren't dying — they're just hitting a few speed bumps, like all new tech."Link to Original Source

I have always said that producing electric cars produces more CO2 than our fossil fuel cars. Conversely when you think you are being "green"; do people even think of how much fossil fuels have to be burned in order to create the electricity feed that goes into the car. False economics to the extreme.

even think of how much fossil fuels have to be burned in order to create the electricity feed that goes into the car.

the burning of fuel in the combustion engine is so horribly inefficient, that burning it in an electric station, transmitting it to the car, storing it in the battery and taking it back out again, is MORE efficient (more miles per unit of gasoline).

even think of how much fossil fuels have to be burned in order to create the electricity feed that goes into the car.

the burning of fuel in the combustion engine is so horribly inefficient, that burning it in an electric station, transmitting it to the car, storing it in the battery and taking it back out again, is MORE efficient (more miles per unit of gasoline).

Good point. This weekend I am taking a trip on a traditional steam train! I cannot wait even though it is not energy efficient, it is still fun.

Fantastic; I wish in the UK we invested more in hydro-electric instead of the highly controversial wind farms. I must concur that such an expression as "you insensitive clod" is a phrase I have not heard for many years!

Electric car makers are recreating the performance of petrol-driven cars with electric drive-trains, and then selling them as "more environmentally friendly". This is completely mis-marketing. The problem is, as many people have commented, the manufacturing techniques are not environmentally friendly.

The current prime culprit is the lithium batteries. This is touted as energy efficient storage, which it is, but it ignores two problems: whilst it is not a rare-earth, mining it and manufacturing with it has b